Tsui (Zu: Warriors of Magic Mountain) Hark directed this wild horror-Kung Fu hybrid. Agent 999 (Norman Chu) goes to a remote island to find a master criminal known as Rolex (Melvin Wong). There, he stumbles upon a village solely populated by cannibals. Naturally, it doesn’t take long before their chief (Eddy Ko) wants to turn Agent 999 into a hot lunch.
I have to be upfront by saying that not all of the humor works. Some of the gags are overly broad, painfully obvious, or just plain unfunny (like the stuff with the horny transvestite). I guess that’s to be expected though. The very nature of combining so many genres virtually guaranteed this was going to be wildly uneven. (There’s even an element of film noir here as Agent 999 wears a fedora and smokes constantly, just like an old-fashioned movie detective.) The strongest sequences are weighted towards the first act, but there are some definite rough patches along the way. However, when it finds its sweet spot, and all the elements come together, it’s kind of dazzling to watch.
The breathless action sequences masterfully blend Hark’s knack for action choreography with horror and humor. There’s a terrific scene where Agent 999 is strung up like a human hammock and has to fend off a meat cleaver-wielding cannibal. The ingenuity of this scene, not to mention the clever punchline, will surely put a smile on your face. Another fight scene takes place in “the slaughterhouse” where he singlehandedly takes on a squad of cannibal guards features some really funny sight gags and impressive Kung Fu moves.
Again, a lot of this is uneven. The ending is sort of dumb too. That said, there is some jaw-dropping stuff to be had here. It’s definitely the best Kung Fu cannibal comedy I’ve seen in some time. In short, fans of horror-comedies and Kung Fu insanity are sure to eat up We’re Going to Eat You.
AKA: Cannibal Kung Fu: Burn! Cannibal Fist. AKA: Kung Fu Cannibals. AKA: Hell Has No Gates. AKA: No Door to Hell.
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